They were wrapped in sen yai, which is the wide rice noodle wrappers, and included a mix of different things on the inside, mostly tofu, jicama, lettuce, basil, and some other wonderful fresh herbs.

I loved the nice kick of mint within the rolls, which really gave it a nice refreshing flavor.

por pia sot (ปอเปี๊ยสด)

These little pancake guys, known as por pia sot (ปอเปี๊ยสด) were next in line. A very thin dough wrapped around bean sprouts and other ingredients and covered in a sweet brown glaze.

het yang (grilled mushrooms เห็ดย่าง)

Like I’ve mentioned before, in my opinion mushrooms are probably the best meat substitute. These little skewers of het yang (grilled mushrooms เห็ดย่าง) were off the chain! They were chew and spongy like they should be and the lime infused chili sauce was scrumptious.

Yes indeed, except this version was hoy tod het (หอยทอด(เห็ด)), oysters made way for once again, the glorious mushroom.

Grilled shitake mushrooms

One of the dishes I almost always order at any vegetarian Thai restaurant I go to, is grilled shitake mushrooms, which they call hed hom (เห็ดหอมย่าง).

These mushrooms are usually prepared mostly with the stems, so they are literally almost meaty tasting. They have great texture, almost grainy, and are packed with flavor.

For myself, it hardly get better for a vegetarian dish than these mushroom.

khao ob puak (ข้าวอบเผือก)

One of the things I enjoy about eating vegetarian Thai food, is that they often have a choice of really good types of brown whole grain rice – which I’m a huge fan of.

The khao ob puak (ข้าวอบเผือก), which you’ll normally find right in the middle of the food court, is a wonderful mixture of black rice, steamed with pieces of taro and gingko nuts.

It went very well with all the rest of the dishes I ordered. If you love rice, don’t miss this wonderful dish at Chamlong’s Asoke (จำลอง (สันติอโศก).

kanom jeen nam prik (ขนมจีนน้ำพริก)

If you’re in the mood for eating some noodles, try the kanom jeen nam prik (ขนมจีนน้ำพริก), soft fermented rice noodles in a nutty sweet curry sauce.

My wife ate this dish the last time we went, and she really enjoyed it.

Fruit salad (ส้มตำผลไม้)

One of my top recommendations for vegetarian Thai food dishes at Chamlong’s is the som tam ponlamai (fruit salad ส้มตำผลไม้).

They don’t use fish sauce, because it’s pure vegetarian, so the mixture of fruit is dressed in lime juice, soy sauce, and chilies.

It depends on what do you go, what exact mixture of fruit you’ll get in your salad, but usually it comes with dragon fruit, pineapple, watermelon, guava, tomatoes, and a few shreds of extra green papaya. A sprinkle of roasted peanuts gives another nice touch.

At many Thai vegetarian restaurants, you’ll find that they serve all sorts of fake meats.

So for dessert, I decided I needed to try a few skewers of fake grilled meat. The one pictured above is supposed to be pork belly, and you can even see the noticeable different layers of the pig stomach.

I have to admit, it was pretty bad, and tasted quite a lot like cardboard. But if you’re curious how it tastes, like I was, you should give it a try too.

How to get to Chamlong’s Asoke Vegetarian Thai Food Restaurant:

You can either walk from Chatuchak Market, or you can get off at Kampaeng Phet MRT station.

Update: May 2014

Thank you to Jacy for the directions update: “Walk out from Chaktuchak exit 1 and cross the road to the opposite side which is IN Square Mall now (this is a new shopping center).Then walk to the back of the Mall and you can see the food court right in front of you.”

Prices: Small things are 10 THB and most dishes are 20 – 25 THB. It won’t break the bank!

Here’s the map:

Read the directions above, because they are doing construction in the area and the streets are changing. Also Thai readers should note this food court is often referred to as ชมรมมังสรวิรัติแห่งประเทศไทย or The Vegetarian Club of Thailand.

Hi bro . First time visiting bangkok next month and i am a Lacto-ovo vegetarian . Is this restaurant still available ? Haha . Would this vegetarian restaurant be suitable for us ? Does the food contain onion and galric ? Would be staying at chinatown hotel and visiting patunarm market . Any vegetarian food available for us at chinatown or patunarm .

Hi John, hmm, I don’t remember seeing anything in English, so mainly you just have to see the vegetables and ingredients, but at most of the food court each stall sells just one or two things. All the best.

My friend and I has visited Bangkok last weekend and it’s take us 45min to Chamlong Vegetarians Foodcourt because we doesn’t have the correct and clear direction therefore I am trying to give some advise to those who interested to go there.Firstly walk out from Chaktuchak exit 1 and cross the road to the opposite side which was IN Square Mall now.Then walk to the back of the Mall and you can see the foodcourt right in front of you. It’s so easy to find if someone has given us clear direction.

Just got back from there, great place – though the directions are a little unclear, due mainly to construction in the area.

Just posted up clearer directions with pics, as some of the waypoints aren’t as obvious anymore (the antique store you refer to has closed down, and most of the buildings down the soi have been knocked down, mainly burma workers huts now).

Massive help though, as we got lost because another blog sent us to the back of the farmers market across the road for half an hour!

This is no doubt a great place. I went there on a Sunday at 2.30pm last week and unfortunately, most of the shops were closed. But still one shop was kind enough to serve me a Vermicelli dish and I can say it without second thought that it was the best dish I had in Bangkok for 20THB. I am definitely going again sometime soon to this place but will make sure that I reach there by 12-12.30 so wont be deprived of this feast!

I am planning to visit Bangkok during Bangkok Vegetarian Festival sometime around 16-18 October 2012.

I will appreciate if you could kindly suggest the best 5 places to visit during these days. I am planning to stay at a hotel in Sukhumvit, say close to Terminal 21. Besides Chamlong’s Asoke, I have thought of May Kaidee as I read a lot of revvs about it. Any other best places for vegetarian Thai?

I am an Indian from Mumbai but I do not touch Indian food outside India so oriental vegetarian with different mock meats would be the best to try during the festival.

Mark,
great recommendation! hey yang with dipping sauce is incredible! didn’t know simple foodfare can be so delicious

I asked about som tam ponlamai, the lady spoken in thai about something and of course I couldn’t understand a single bit LOLz. I went twice but could not find it available on both days :(
is som tam ponlamai only available on certain day time of the day?

you should have mention about their grocery which sells healthy fruit juice blend for only 10baht/bottle. :)

No fruit sum tum! We should ask about it the next time we’re there. As far as we know, it’s one of their regular dishes, but something could have changed. Glad you found and liked this place. We appreciate you coming back to give us feedback and appreciate the tip on the fruit juices!

I was recently in Bangkok and being vegetarian, I was looking for Jay restaurants. I could not visit Chamlong as I thought this was only open on weekends However I did come across Jay food stalls in Banana Family Park near Ari Station on Sukhumvit line. I was there almost every day for lunch. Great food and you could stuff yourself with delicious dishes and dessert under 75 THB. I hope to visit Bangkok soon and would love to try Chamlong. Thanks for your very informative post.

Thanks for the comment Kevin! Yes, I’ve been to the food court at Ari BTS station and they also serve some of the best vegetarian cuisine in town! Hope you can return to Bangkok sometime soon to check out Chamlong’s as well.

Thanks for the comment Kalvin, We shared an article on Banana Family Park aka Baan Suan Pi a little earlier and we’re in love with that place too. These are must try places for vegetarians who love to feast while visiting Bangkok.

Wow! That looks amazing. I wish that I found this place when we were in Bangkok. But, I know we’ll be back, so there’s always next time:-) I love that they will refund you if your eyes are too big for your stomach because that is something I would totally do. I love food and want to try everything! What a great deal too